On September 18, 2025, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) held the first trades-specific Express Entry draw of 2025, sending 1,250 Invitations to Apply for permanent residency. Trade-based invitations return after nearly a year, with a minimum CRS score of 505, signifying great demand for skilled persons in Canada’s trade occupations.
Full Details of Express Entry Trades Draw
● Category – Trade occupations (Version 2)
● Dates & Time – September 18, 2025
● Number of ITAs issued – 1,250
● Minimum CRS score – 505
● Rank needed – 1,250 or above
Full List of Eligible Occupations Under Trades Category
Occupation | NOC Code |
---|---|
Contractors and supervisors, oil and gas drilling and services | 82021 |
Floor covering installers | 73113 |
Painters and decorators (except interior decorators) | 73112 |
Roofers and shinglers | 73110 |
Concrete finishers | 73100 |
Other technical trades and related occupations | 72999 |
Water well drillers | 72501 |
Electrical mechanics | 72422 |
Heating, refrigeration and air conditioning mechanics | 72402 |
Heavy-duty equipment mechanics | 72401 |
Construction millwrights and industrial mechanics | 72400 |
Bricklayers | 72320 |
Cabinetmakers | 72311 |
Carpenters | 72310 |
Gas fitters | 72302 |
Plumbers | 72300 |
Industrial electricians | 72201 |
Electricians (except industrial and power system) | 72200 |
Welders and related machine operators | 72106 |
Sheet metal workers | 72102 |
Machinists and machining and tooling inspectors | 72100 |
Home building and renovation managers | 70011 |
Construction managers | 70010 |
Cooks | 63200 |
Construction estimators | 22303 |
Comparison of All Trade Express Entry Draws Till Date
The CRS cut-off for this trades draw in September 2025 is significantly higher than for past
trades draws.
Date | Invitations | CRS Score Cutoff |
---|---|---|
September 18, 2025 | 1,250 | 505 |
October 23, 2024 | 1,800 | 433 |
July 4, 2024 | 1,800 | 436 |
December 19, 2023 | 1,000 | 425 |
August 3, 2023 | 1,500 | 388 |
What Should Candidates Do After Receiving an Invitation to Apply?
If an ITA is one of the 1,250 issued in this trade draw, the following steps –
1. Application for permanent residence must be completed via the IRCC portal (within allowed time).
2. Your evidence of work experience in the relevant occupations, proof of education, and results of an official language test must be submitted.
3. Make sure that your medical examination, police certificates, and other supporting
documents remain valid and properly submitted.
4. Keep track of any relevant processing times and correspondence from the IRCC for
potential follow-up.
How to Better Your Chances for Trades Draws Ahead
Some considerations to better situate yourself for trades draws –
● Make sure the experience you have corresponds to a trade occupation specified in
the eligible trades list and accumulate at least 6 months of continuous work
experience.
● In other words, improve your CRS score by focusing on factors such as language
proficiency, education, or additional work experience.
● Submit your Express Entry profile as soon as possible, as in the event of tied CRS
scores, the tie-break rule will assist those who filed their application first.
● Lastly, keep up with IRCC updates, and have your documents ready so that you will
be able to act right away when another trades draw happens.
September 2025 Express Entry Draws Recap
Date | Category | Invitations | CRS Score |
---|---|---|---|
September 2 | General (no program specified) | 249 | 772 |
September 3 | Canadian Experience Class | 1,000 | 514 |
September 4 | French Language Proficiency | 4,500 | 446 |
September 15 | Provincial Nominee Program | 228 | 746 |
September 17 | Education Occupations | 2,500 | 462 |
Importance of this trade draw
● The CRS cut-off at 505 was significantly above that of any preceding trades in Express Entry.
● This shows increased competition among candidates from trade occupations and,
thus, the department of immigration is also being more selective in 2025 for this
category.
● The lapse of time, going on eleven months now since the last trades draw, may have
given time for experienced/higher scoring candidates to have piled up in the pool,
thus causing the cut-off to go up.